Drugs Used The most commonly used combination of chemotherapy drugs for pleural mesothelioma is pemetrexed and cisplatin. Other combinations or individual drugs may be used, including carboplatin, raltitrexed, mitomycin, vinorelbine and gemcitabine.
For peritoneal mesothelioma, pemetrexed and cisplatin is the most common combination. Other drugs that may be used are irinotecan, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine and gemcitabine.
Side effects
All chemotherapy drugs have side effects. Drugs affect people in different ways. Not everyone has the same side effects with the same drug. Some people have very few side effects at all. There are some side effects that are quite common with many chemotherapy drugs. These are
A fall in the number of blood cells
Feeling and being sick
Diarrhoea
Sore mouth and mouth ulcers
Hair loss or thinning
Feeling tired and run down
Which drugs are used
The most commonly used combination of chemotherapy drugs for pleural mesothelioma is pemetrexed and cisplatin. Sometimes pemetrexed is combined with carboplatin. Other combinations or individual drugs may be used, including
Raltitrexed (Tomudex) – usually in combination with cisplatin
Mitomycin
Vinorelbine
Gemcitabine
For peritoneal mesothelioma, cisplatin and pemetrexed given into a vein is the most common combination. But one or more of the following drugs may be used
Irinotecan
Cyclophosphamide
Doxorubicin
Dacarbazine
Gemcitabine
Chemotherapy drugs for mesothelioma and their side effects
The most commonly used combination of chemotherapy drugs for pleural mesothelioma is pemetrexed and cisplatin. Other combinations or individual drugs may be used, including carboplatin, raltitrexed, mitomycin, vinorelbine and gemcitabine. For peritoneal mesothelioma, pemetrexed and cisplatin is the most common combination. Other drugs that may be used are irinotecan, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine and gemcitabine.
Chemotherapy into the abdomen.Drugs used in trials for peritoneal mesothelioma include
Cisplatin and doxorubicin
Heated cisplatin and mitomycin
Mitomycin on its own
Fluorouracil and paclitaxel
The side effects of chemotherapy into the abdomen tend to be less than with chemotherapy into a vein. But some people have changes in blood pressure and heart rate during the chemotherapy procedure. Some people also have a high temperature. The changes normally go back to normal a few hours after the treatment.
